Fern
Fern '''(Minor Goddess of Loss) Fern is the goddess of loss. During her life she was a druid to Meaghana, and a priestess to Astrix. The death of the goddess Astrix is said to have caused her madness. '''Beliefs of the Priesthood: '''The priests of Fern seek to end the universe. They believe that the only way to stop pain and destruction is to stop everything. These priests tend to be even more unbalanced than the average priests of Brilla are. The entire religion is fatalistic as the words of the goddess show: "Life is pain, nothing but hurt and fear. I charge you, my followers, to liberate the world. The fear and pain stem from people's happiness. All things are a balance, if you remove one side of the balance the other will fall as well. Take from mortals their happiness, their joy, their love, and along with it will come their hate, their pain and their fear." Most people take this as proof that Fern and all those that follow her are completely insane. It does however, begin to explain some of their actions. At heart, even Fern herself wants to get rid of pain. Her approach to it however makes her dangerous. "Those that serve the other immortals are dangerous. They blind the world with hope, and hide the reality. I have shown you the reality. Take my gifts and strike down the spreaders of lies." This explains why the followers of Fern hate other priesthoods so much. She does reserve her special hatred for Seras and Pthalo, two gods who focus on the power of Suffering and Love, respectively, the two things that she strikes out against most. She also bears a particular hatred for Belandra, lady of poison, who, through a bloody civil war, managed to steal the worship of the drow from Fern, and has since driven them into agressively expanding their territory. '''Recent Changes: Though Fern has never been a popular deity, one of her newest followers is seeking to change that. Having attracted the attention of the Lady of Loss, the half-elf Thosar'ith has begun a campaign to gain his lady a greater acceptance by the people of Asteria. Calling her the Lady of Solace, he has had some success in focusing attention on Seras and Belandra. Though it remains to be seen how successful he will be, his activities have already earned Fern much greater acceptance than she previously had in the establishment of the country. Ritual: '''The holy symbol of Fern is a small bag with a crushed stone and a broken metal musical note inside. This represents Fern's loss of faith in both Meaghana and Astrix. Other than this the priests usually wear dark, somber clothing. The only real ritual they perform is the ritual destruction of anything of value, particularly sentimental value. They destroy these things in front of the people to whom they are important if possible. '''New Ritual: '''With the establishment of the Cathedral of Darkened Hope in Southlund, Asteria, Fern has begun granting her followers a new holy symbol. Her new symbol, a pair of hands, open and inviting, speaks of the success of the Lady of Solace. '''Favored Weapons: '''Club '''Domains: Destruction & Fate Noted Followers: Thosar'ith Category:Fern Category:Gods